SEIU - Blowing The Deal for Janitors in the Press

Two of my best pals are Doctors ( Mr. MDs). Clark is an Internal Medicine Superstar and Manning is the best surgeon in Southwest Texas and Mexico. Both told me 'If you can feel your heart pumping gallons of blood, you have a problem. See a doctor and quick. The Beauty of any living organ is that you should not know its there.'

When any Organism or Organization kicks up with genuine Old Timey Activism, it seems, then you are a dead man.

If your collective bargaining unit is flapping its arms like a baby sparrow on a crowded side-walk before it has entered into negotiations with management, you workers are screwed, blued and tattooed - maybe color that up to Purple.

Yesterday, SEIU Chicago with Tom Balanoff, did all of the old Trotskyite stuff right - organized a march to the Czar's Palace, waited for cossacks to saber workers, and flooded the route with Press and sprinkled the podium with the colorful assortment of politicians it has purchased - Toni Preckwinkle and Joe Moore.

If you click my post title and watch the Progress Illinois video catch Joe Moore's weaving and grinding up on the podium - he looks like a horn-dog on Viagra overload, or a five year old boy with a kidney full of Mountain Dew Red in a way too long line at Target.

Here's the deal. Unions engage in collective bargaining for their rank and file. Good ones engage management and actually bargain the best deal for their workers. The press is never invited.

SEIU pressures politicians to change laws and ordinances that raise taxes and secure
some pittance of a raise. SEIU's dues paying membership get to march in the cold and listen to rhetoric. At the end of the month they have more month than pennies.

The Press buys SEIU's nonsense, because SEIU talks and talks and talks and then makes Purple People march. Good theatre; bad labor practices.

Janitors are paid lousy wages. Ask Tom Balanoff and SEIU to bargain in good faith and not in the media.

Anybody hear anything from The Building Owners and Management Association (BOMA)? Nope. Read anything in the SEIU tanked up media - you know the ones who always use 'Labor" when they mean SEIU? Nope. BOMA is used to dealing with real labor unions. The ones that succeed for the rank and file.

They (BOMA) already won.

Chaplet for The Seven Catholic Illinois Issues - Use The Seven Wounds of Christ

I am not a particularly pious person - would that I were - I'm too lazy and too chicken. However, I pray like a Turk at a Bris Milah most days.

The Rosary takes many forms and variations here is one based upon the Seven Wounds of Christ. How about we Illinois Catholic pray for each of issues that our Cardinal, our Bishops, Our Schools Chief, Our Chancellor and the great people of the Catholic Conference of Illinois bring to Soringfield this week? I'll do it if you guys will. See, I'm lazy and chicken and need group reinforcement.

Here's each issue and the prayer to go with it.

1.legislation to increase the Education Expense Tax Credit, utilized by Catholic school parents, from $500 to $1000 annually; Wound of the Knees
From the moment of your betrayal, you were bound and dragged by the centurions before your accusers and false witnesses. When you were unable to keep pace with these torturers, you fell to your knees, were flogged and then dragged again. If the punishment of those knees were not enough, under the burden of your heavy cross you fell again to your knees three times. I praise worship and adore the wounds of your knees. By these wounds I ask that you make all souls close to your heart become ardent lamps lighting today's dark and faithless world.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


2.funding to community organizations and parishes to provide English classes to immigrants;Wound of the Scourging
I come before you as an unworthy person begging you to allow me to consecrate myself entirely to your most Sacred Heart. I praise, worship, and adore the Holy Wound of your scourging with so many openings that shine forth with the pure and bright rays of your patient love. I offer to you, Jesus, your Holy Church, and I ask you to bless our Pope, our bishop and all our priests.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


3.legislation mandating that a woman seeking an abortion be offered the opportunity to view a sonogram before the procedure;Wound of the Left Shoulder
During your scourging the torturer's whip lashed onto your left shoulder before tearing the flesh from your back and then not punished enough you were forced to carry your own heavy cross on that same red, torn and bloodied shoulder. Because of our sins You have been struck unto death. I praise, worship, and adore the Holy Wound of your left shoulder. Help all those who desire to serve You more closely by increasing their faith, hope, and love. And I ask you to protect all your priests and strengthen them against the attacks of the Evil One.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


4.opposition to legislation providing for same-sex marriage or similarly defined civil unions;Wound of the Crowning of ThornsO my Jesus, your Holy Face has been marred by the malice of sinful man. The thorns from the twisted branches penetrate into Your Sacred Head, the Temple of Divine Wisdom. May the memory of your wounds ever remain in the hidden places of my heart, to stir up within me your compassionate sorrow, so that the flame of your love may be enkindled in me. I thank you for the infinite love with which You endured so numerous and such cruel sufferings, to expiate my sins which I detest with all my heart. "O Jesus, whose Face delights my heart, I beseech You to imprint in me your Divine resemblance, to inflame me with your love and make me contemplate your glorious Face in Heaven."
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


5.legislation to ensure federal and state reimbursements are provided to Catholic health care and hospitals on a timely basis;Wound of Your HandsUnited with the entire Heavenly Hosts and with all the faithful on earth, I praise, worship, and adore the Holy Wound of your Hands. I thank you; for it is on account of our sins that Your hands have been pierced. I offer to You all those who at this moment are dying. Touch the heart of those souls and have mercy on them.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


6.legislation to finally abolish the death penalty;Wound of your FeetIn union with all the souls that are still detained far from You in Purgatory and who yearn to be with You, I praise, worship, and adore the Holy Wound of your Feet. Have mercy on those souls who hunger while awaiting your mercy. Come to the aid of those tried by life's difficulties and all those who walk in darkness. Allow them to discover that You are their only hope.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.


7.legislation or budgetary action to provide a cost of doing business increase for Catholic Charities and other social service providers;Wound of the Opened Side
It is through your sufferings that You relieved our sins and reconciled the world to Yourself. Receive our praise, worship, and adoration for that suffering. I praise, adore, and worship the Wound of your opened Side, your pierced Heart. I desire to live every remaining day of my life in the cleft of Your opened side and to love you more. So I ask you again to inscribe your wounds on my heart, that I may read in them your sufferings and your love. May the memory of those wounds ever remain in the hidden depths of my heart so that I may return Your love to you.
On the next 4 beads
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be to the Father,
I adore you Jesus, I love you, and I praise you.

Seven Cardinal Catholic Issues for Illinois Legislature

March 4th Catholic Illinois will have its voice heard in Springfield, Illinois. The Illinois Legislature will hear the demands of Illinois Catholics. Francis Cardinal George and Chicago Catholic Schools Chief Sister Mary Paul McCaughey will articulate Seven items of Catholic Concern for the Illinois Legislative Agenda:

1.legislation to increase the Education Expense Tax Credit, utilized by Catholic school parents, from $500 to $1000 annually;

2.funding to community organizations and parishes to provide English classes to immigrants;

3.legislation mandating that a woman seeking an abortion be offered the opportunity to view a sonogram before the procedure;

4.opposition to legislation providing for same-sex marriage or similarly defined civil unions;

5.legislation to ensure federal and state reimbursements are provided to Catholic health care and hospitals on a timely basis;

6.legislation to finally abolish the death penalty;

7.legislation or budgetary action to provide a cost of doing business increase for Catholic Charities and other social service providers;

We can call The Catholic Conference at 312-368-1066 for further information. We can also call our Illinois Legislators and our Catholic Illinois Governor.

Art Not Chance - Catholics Not Welcome Still

"I have hated the Church way before anyone else." Bill Maher


Alexander Pope's family was not allowed to live within 'ten miles of London or Windsor.' That was due to the very acceptable anti-Catholic sentiment that flourished in Britain and still is quite fashionable in the United States.

Bill Maher's whipping of the Pope's Dogs in America - all 60 million of us - gave him the Bulliest of Pulpits - TV. Maher goes unchallenged and unchecked and will continue to do so. He even has a movie out that no one I know has seen, but everyone has heard about - Buzzzzzzzz.

Boston College reviewed the movie:

Religulous is incredibly indicative of Maher's love to stir up trouble and surely offended those who identify with the Holy Land or creationist museum guests. Instead of striving to inspire religious questioning, Maher attacks beliefs that are dear to a huge demographic. Charles' style is reminiscent of his pervious work on Borat, as Religulous attempts to go over the heads of those at whom it pokes fun. Just like Borat, Charles takes the back seat and lets the lead (Maher) take the driver seat to craft his style of humor.

After his prolific talk show history, Maher takes his disregard for others' feelings to the big screen in Religulous. Although entertaining, Maher falls short of convincing many to question their beliefs; instead, he alienates those who might sympathize with his cause.

http://media.www.bcheights.com/media/storage/paper144/news/2009/02/19/TheScene/Mahers.religulous.Able.To.Stir.Up.Extremism.But.Not.Debate-3637016-page2.shtml

PC gave Maher carte blanche, but it failed to fuel the clown with talent or genuine insights - human much less divine. Maher tools for others who hate Catholics in particular and religion in general.

HBO gave the raving anti-Catholic Bill Maher a wonderful platform from which to insult sixty (60) million Americans. Renegade Catholics are lionized like George Carlin, Eugene O'Neill, or F. Scott Fitzgerald. America has no place for Catholics in text books ( try and find any reference to the Carrolls of Maryland; John Barry Father of the US Navy; or American Philosopher Orestes Brownson). Devout Catholics are dissected on a Procrustean rack by context critics and semiotic totalitarians and then tossed aside as slaves to the Vatican.

Like writing itself, this fashionable American bigotry is practised. Good writing requires continued practice. As Pope wrote," True ease in writing comes from art, not chance, / As those move easiest who have learned to dance"
In Essay on Criticism, Pope defended literary orthodoxies and savage attention to virtues, patriotism, and piety in Faith. Writers are not 'outside' themselves it seems. A writer who would attack a life-long friend in an attempt to curry favor with a patron, could not devote himself to the canons of taste that command all literary arts,

Likewise, trendy bigots can spew hate in fashionable epithets and sound bytes

But if in Noble Minds some Dregs remain,
Not yet purg'd off, of Spleen and sow'r Disdain,
Discharge that Rage on more Provoking Crimes,
Nor fear a Dearth in these Flagitious Times.
No Pardon vile Obscenity should find,
Tho' Wit and Art conspire to move your Mind;
But Dulness with Obscenity must prove
As Shameful sure as Importance in Love.
In the fat Age of Pleasure, Wealth, and Ease,
Sprung the rank Weed, and thriv'd with large Increase;
When Love was all an easie Monarch's Care;
Seldom at Council, never in a War:
Jilts rul'd the State, and Statesmen Farces writ;
Nay Wits had Pensions, and young Lords had Wit:
The Fair sate panting at a Courtier's Play,
And not a Mask went un-improv'd away:
The modest Fan was liked up no more,
And Virgins smil'd at what they blush'd before--
The following Licence of a Foreign Reign
Did all the Dregs of bold Socinus drain;
Then Unbelieving Priests reform'd the Nation,
And taught more Pleasant Methods of Salvation;
Where Heav'ns Free Subjects might their Rights dispute,
Lest God himself shou'd seem too Absolute.
Pulpits their Sacred Satire learn'd to spare,
And Vice admir'd to find a Flatt'rer there!
Encourag'd thus, Witt's Titans brav'd the Skies,
And the Press groan'd with Licenc'd Blasphemies--
These Monsters, Criticks! with your Darts engage,
Here point your Thunder, and exhaust your Rage!
Yet shun their Fault, who, Scandalously nice,
Will needs mistake an Author into Vice;All seems Infected that th' Infected spy,
As all looks yellow to the Jaundic'd Eye.

LEARN then what MORALS Criticks ought to show,
For 'tis but half a Judge's Task, to Know.
'Tis not enough, Taste, Judgment, Learning, join;
In all you speak, let Truth and Candor shine:
That not alone what to your Sense is due,
All may allow; but seek your Friendship too.

Be silent always when you doubt your Sense;
And speak, tho' sure, with seeming Diffidence:
Some positive persisting Fops we know,
Who, if once wrong, will needs be always so;
But you, with Pleasure own your Errors past,
An make each Day a Critick on the last.

'Tis not enough your Counsel still be true,
Blunt Truths more Mischief than nice Falsehood do;
Men must be taught as if you taught them not;
And Things unknown propos'd as Things forgot:
Without Good Breeding, Truth is disapprov'd;
That only makes Superior Sense belov'd.

Be Niggards of Advice on no Pretence;
For the worst Avarice is that of Sense:
With mean Complacence ne'er betray your Trust,
Nor be so Civil as to prove Unjust;
Fear not the Anger of the Wise to raise;
Those best can bear Reproof, who merit Praise.

'Twere well, might Criticks still this Freedom take;
But Appius reddens at each Word you speak,
And stares, Tremendous! with a threatning Eye
Like some fierce Tyrant in Old Tapestry!
Fear most to tax an Honourable Fool,
Whose Right it is, uncensur'd to be dull;
Such without Wit are Poets when they please.
As without Learning they can take Degrees.
Leave dang'rous Truths to unsuccessful Satyrs,
And Flattery to fulsome Dedicators,
Whom, when they Praise, the World believes no more,
Than when they promise to give Scribling o'er.
'Tis best sometimes your Censure to restrain,
And charitably let the Dull be vain:
Your Silence there is better than your Spite,
For who can rail so long as they can write?
Still humming on, their drowzy Course they keep,
And lash'd so long, like Tops, are lash'd asleep.
False Steps but help them to renew the Race,
As after Stumbling, Jades will mend their Pace.
What Crouds of these, impenitently bold,
In Sounds and jingling Syllables grown old,
Still run on Poets in a raging Vein,
Ev'n to the Dregs and Squeezings of the Brain;
Strain out the last, dull droppings of their Sense,
And Rhyme with all the Rage of Impotence!

From Essay on Criticism by Alexander Pope (1688-1744)

Clowns like Maher get the job done for their masters. Their Masters are the people who have eliminated the canons of taste in all of the Arts, in Politics, and in common societal discourse. I call them The Who's To Say-ers: 'Who's to say Lesbianism at the Grammies is not what Americans demand; that humorless PC gelds literature and art.' I do not find Maher clever or funny. He lacks depth of thought and practiced attention to the canons of humor. He is an outrageous loudmouth.

Pope had it right. 'Tis best sometimes your Censure to restrain,
And charitably let the Dull be vain:
Your Silence there is better than your Spite,
For who can rail so long as they can write?

Mark Brown and Ben Bradley Get Down, Dudes! Eddie V is Free and Fitzy Feels 'Chilling Effects' That's So Old School!

'Dude, I play a hard-hitting reporter for a once great Metropolitan newspaper. I'm Looking for this man, Fast Eddie. Seen Him? He's crook. I cut up my hands when I fell getting out of my Prius. Don't look at me, look at the picture. Look more carefully. Seen him? He's a crook. Look more carefully. Seen him? He's a crook. Hey, can I have the rest of that hamburger when you're done with it? Seen him?
He's a crook . . .'


I am delighted! The Fitzy Procrustean Justice Rack - it seems - does not Fit All.

Goofy Mark Brown is beside himself - now, if Fast Eddie had torched the home of his sleeping family like Madison Hobley, or murdered an elderly Mexican couple like Aaron Paterson, or gunned down and urinated on the bodies of Officers Doyle and Fahey like the Wilson Brothers, and had G (Gimme) Flint Taylor instead of the brilliant Mike Monico as his attorney, Nuanced Goofball Brown would be moist in the eyes and damp in the undies for Eddie Vrdolyak.

Goofy Mark Brown who helped push the summer rioting on the West Side a few years ago with his 'bring it on' editorializing based upon a Sun Times Front PagePhoto of a cop being confronted by a street thug. Mark Brown told Chicago what Mark Brown believed the white cop was thinking and felt iin the heart beating under his Kevlar, is beside himself with Age-ism against Judge Shadur. You see Mark Brown has a column and he can say anything no matter how inflammatory, or goofy.


Mark Brown is taking the stand - out of court mind you - that Edward Vrdolyak is guiltier than all get out and that Judge Milton Shadur is Old and therefore addled.

Check it out soul-patched Dudes!

Perhaps we should stand back in awe of the ever-slippery Vrdolyak and the crack legal team working on his behalf -- some of the best defense minds in the city, with Michael Monico taking the lead and Terence Gillespie and Lorna Propes among the many sending in signals from the sidelines.

And certainly consideration should be given to whether federal prosecutors badly misplayed their hand by signing on to a plea agreement that not only allowed Vrdolyak to avoid an embarrassing trial but left wiggle room for Shadur to set him free.

But the best explanation that I can offer for what happened Thursday -- other than a fix -- is that the 84-year-old Shadur is an over-the-hill jurist who thinks he's smarter than everybody else because he can see fine points in the law and facts that aren't evident to mere mortals. (That is SO Ageism, Mark, Dude!)


After the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald put out a statement saying he "strongly but respectfully" disagreed with the sentence. As you can see, I'm coming up short on the respectful side.

My concern is that Chicagoans will again receive the message that some people are above the law.

Thanks for your concern there, Mark. I'll let the neighbors know that you got our backs. Gino Ford and Smash McKenna were losing sleep thinking that this case might - might mind you, give them pause that gee, some people might be above the law - like Bill Ayers, Bernrdine Dohrn, or all the murderers that G. Flint Taylor wrestles Gator Bradley for more of his cuts in civil suits. They'll be relieved by your thoughtful advocacy, Mark Brown. Dude!

Another Happenin' Dude is Ben Bradley! Ben went to Homewood-Flossmoor in the deep south suburbs as far from Hegewisch as Canaryville is from Kennilworth. Hegewisch and South Chicago are Vrdolyak neighborhoods where Community Activists pretend to help unemployed Steel Workers. Ed Vrdolyak actually helped unemployed steel workers.

ABC TV's Ben Bradley is like Mark Brown. He goes all big Sprawling House on Vrdolyak.

Judge Milton Shadur found serious flaws in the government's case, at one point, calling it "overkill." Later, Judge Shader admonished prosecutors for portraying the former hard-charging alderman and political king-maker as a wheeling and dealing "insider."
"We do not sentence [defendants] because of what people might think about them" Judge Shadur declared from the bench.
"Obviously, the judge thought a lot about what he did," said Michael Monico, Vrdolyak's attorney.
Vrdolyak's attorney declined to comment Friday and at the sprawling home of the former 10th Ward alderman, no gloating from a woman who answered the door. ( Ben said, Dudes, that there was 'no gloating from a woman who answered the door!' Chilling. You would think there'd be gloating!)Prosecutors rely on the threat of time behind bars to 'encourage' defendants to cooperate. While Vrdolyak pleaded guilty, he's offering the feds no help. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Collins says in a similar case involving former Ryan advisor and lobbyist Donald Udstuen, eight months of prison, followed by eight months of house arrest was the sentence and Mr. Udstuen played ball.
"He cooperated. He wore a wire on Governor George Ryan and he still got eight months in jail!" Collins said.

Now here'sy favoprite part and Ben Bradley goes for the Progressive mantra -Chilling - Dude!

Collins says with the clock ticking on an indictment of ousted Governor Rod Blagojevich, he's concerned the Vrdolyak sentence may have a chilling effect on the government's ability to flip witnesses. ( As Roland Burris would say, YES!) "You're going to have people in the back of their minds saying, 'wait a minute, I don't have to help you out. I might get a walk. I mean Fast Eddie Vrdolyak with all his reputation walked out of there,'" said Collins. Even those who quarrel with the judge's sentence say Shadur has a reputation of being ethical beyond reproach. He 84 years old, was appointed by Jimmy Carter.
While Ed Vrdolyak helped countless lawyers trade their shingles for spots on the bench, the judge who sentenced Vrdolyak was appointed during the Carter administration, and said in court he did not know Vrdolyak before the case came before him. He's a well-respected judge who simply didn't think prosecutors had much of a case.

( emphases my own - stupidity by reporters) Dude, Ah!

Fred Bender - Mr. Clean and Acted with Cary Grant

Cousin Fred died. He was my late father-in-law Patrick J. Cleary's only living relative. Fred belonged to the Liston Branch of my Late Wife Mary's
family and Fred was a great guy.

When Mary died cousin Fred rode along with me and the kids in Sheehy's limosine. He made a tough day lighter with his stories about Hollywood and chic Chicago.

God Bless You, Fred! My brother in law Mike Cleary, Publisher of Will County's Farmer's Weekly Review wrote this wonderful tribute to a delightful man.

Fred Bender age 78, of Chicago passed away February 25, 2009 at Vitas Hospice in San Antonio Texas. Mr. Bender was born in Davenport Iowa and was a graduate of St. Ambrose College.

Fred was a founder of the Wrightwood Neighborhood Association and a proponent of the preservation of neighborhood parks and homes. His own home, built in the 1880’s was featured in a December 1, 1972 article in Chicago Today newspaper as part of the holiday house tour.

He was a fixture of his Lincoln Park neighborhood, where he greeted any and all who passed by his beloved house on Drummond Place. Loved by all who knew him, Fred was always at home and always receiving a seemingly continuous and endless stream of guests.

Mr. Bender was an accomplished musician and sang as a Heldentenor. He trained under the great Lauritz Melchior and was also awarded a scholarship from the Chicago Conservatory of Music. During his career, he sang with the Paulist Choir and in many operatic choruses for the Lyric Opera the Detroit Symphony, Holy Name Cathedral and others. He toured the country with the Viceroys and the Royal Aires. Fred loved opera and was a great fan of the Lyric, which he attended as often as possible and the Met, never missing a Sunday broadcast. In fact, Mr. Bender’s radio was tuned in to WFMT 24 hours a day, 365 day a year. While he was still able, Mr. Bender would often play at his grand piano and sing, entertaining any and all willing to listen.

Fred also enjoyed an early career as a model and in his day was one of the highest paid male models in the country. In the 1950’s, Mr. Bender represented the Proctor and Gamble Company as one of several actors portraying Mr. Clean, often flying to appearances in a white Cessna aircraft with the words “Mr. Clean” emblazoned on the side. Fred was selected over some 300 other candidates for the job, and presented himself at auditions at the Drake Hotel wearing a bald skullcap. One of the requirements was to not speak, something that, paradoxically, he was able to do better than any of the other candidates. As Mr. Clean, one of his biggest fans was busty 1950’s comic actress Dagmar, about whom Mr. Bender loved to tell many unforgettable and often inappropriate stories.

Fred was an avid storyteller and seemed to be able to tell 3 or 4 stories at a time. Anyone who visited with Fred knew in advance that a “quick visit” was simply not an option. Fred’s operatic training often came in handy, allowing him to talk endlessly.

Among his favorite stories were those about the time that Tennessee Williams rented an apartment from him and the time he sold Audrey Hepburn a fan which she used in the stage production of Gigi. He once owned the house that had been the Chicago residence of 1920’s ballroom dancing stars Irene and Vernon Castle. He had hundreds of other stories about such acquaintances and friends as Lena Horne, Mehelia Jackson, Gene Cooper and Betty Grable, the latter of whom Mr. Bender had once joined to throw the switch illuminating Chicago’s Magnificent Mile Holiday Lights.

Mr. Bender was preceded in death by his best friend and partner, Carter Reed, his brother, Robert, sister Roberta and his parents Elsie and Robert Bender. Mr. Bender was an animal lover

Mike left out the bit about Fred's role as an extra in Alfred Hitchcock's North By Northwest Fred was in the Ambassador East scenes with Cary Grant.

Burris at O'Hare Last Night - Should He Not Stay in Washington? The Cop and Hector

Picking up my Daughter from her flight to O'Hare from Boston was a hoot. God, I do so love waiting at O'Hare. The American Airlines Flight 1087 was delayed handsomely and O'Hare Terminal was leaking like my basement. Tunnels from Pedways to the Hilton were flooded and maintenance crews were placing Yellow plastic PISO MOJADOs all over the joint.

I ran into Officer Al Hartigan* from St. Cajetan's Parish performing his offices with quiet and gracious good humor - 'THEY LOST MY BAGS!!!!!; Where's the Phone that Brings Shuttles to You?; Gate 3? Gate 3? Are you deaf? Gate 3?; Is this O'Hare? How Come my Bags Say ORD?; Pick up my Bags and get them on the Cart? Where's Mayor Daley's Lounge?'

I ( were I Officer Hartigan) would have pulled my service revolver and shot and killed ( reloaded and emptied another cylinder) each one of the over-dressed Botoxed, middle-aged Denver De-Planing Women -Harpies One and All who demand that Officer Hartigan watch their bags while they went into the Hilton 'for twenty minutes.' All this despite the repeated - Homeland Security Alert is Orange - Any Unattended Bags - Report to the nearest Chicago Police Officer.' These 'unattended bags' needed cavity searches - badly.

Yet, with quiet good humor Officer Al Hartigan, CPD soldiered on.

I also met the Salasa* family from Garfield Ridge. Hector worked for Cook County until last November - he is not a cousin of Todd Stroger. While Officer Al peeled off to check on Terminal 2, Hector and I played with his two year old daughter Mia whose head of hair had more curls than $1,500 Irish Step-Dancer wigs that parents shell out for Competition. Mia is a hard core peek-a-boo player and kicked my fat, wrinkled, pale Irish ass at each gambit. She invariably 'I Saw Me'd!' I am slow.

Following that humiliation my spirits soared as the delicate and diminutive frame of the Junior Senator from Illinois flapped his black cashmere topcoat tails at Hector and me, like a baby Starling fallen from the nest, while his tall athletic and handsome green wool topcoated body guard/go-fer Blue Toothed demands to know at what Gate Senator Burris Car would appear by magic and design.

Grinning like a guy who pee'd on my carpet at my party several years ago and attempting to Puppy-Nose-Nudge forgiveness - you know the look, folks - Senator Burris professionally ignored me and Hector! He had a car at Gate Three! His Go-fer was off for the bags!

Yes! I love the way Burris*** hissed out the 'Yes!' at the City Club of Chicago a few days ago. The guy is a cartoon character and I hope and pray that he remains our Senator for the full two years. We, Illinois voters, really need our noses rubbed in this Burris/Blag Business.

Welcome, back home, Senator! What the Hell are you doing here?

Forty Minutes later, Nora's plane landed. Hector's guests arrived from Puerto Rico. Curly Headed Mia was wiped out and sleeping in her stroller. Officer Al Hartigan was still beset by 'Take my Bags! and Who Do I Sue?'

The rain let up; the maintenance guys had all the flooding cleaned up; and Roland Burris will be our Senator for two more years! Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!


* The Officer Hartigan's name has been changed by slight vowel movements - does that sound right?

** Hector's Family name sounds like Salasa.

*** You CAN NOT Make up stuff about Roland Burris!

The son of embattled Illinois Democratic Senator Roland Burris was hired five months ago to a $75,000 a year job under then-Governor Rod Blagojevich.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports Roland Burris II is a senior counsel for the state's Housing Development Authority. That agency's mission includes overseeing mortgage programs for low-income home buyers and anti-foreclosure initiatives.

The interesting thing is Burris II got the job six weeks after the IRS slapped a $34,000 lien on him and three weeks after a mortgage company filed a foreclosure suit on his Chicago home.

Illinois State Republican Rep. Jim Durkin of Western Springs says the fact that Burris faces foreclosure but is working at a housing-related state agency "reeks of hypocrisy."

Edward Vrdolyak - Stands up - Pays and Walks. Good!

I am delighted that Edward Vrdolyak received the probation and fine sentence.
Well done, Judge Shadur!

Mr. Vrdolyak made a practice of standing up - for his Ward, his allies and his clients. Mr. Vrdolyak also stood up when called on the carpet by the Federal Prosecutor who has given the law over to his own Procrustean rake upon which to stretch his targets.

Well done, Judge. Best wishes Mr. Vrdolyak.

Burris to 2010 or $50 Million to Play Progressive? -Burris.

I like Lisa Madigan. The Illinois Attorney General is smart, well-spoken, good-humored and a tough as nails.

But, I like her Sphinx of a Father, Speaker Mike Madigan - the only adult and the only public servant in the long battle with Emil (ComEd & Anyone Else) Jones and Rod (It's Golden) Blagojevich.

Jones and Blagojevich fought each other to the trough at every opportunity. Speaker Madigan quietly took steps to save Illinois millions of dollars.

Today, Madigan's Spokesman Steve Brown offers the best reason to leave Roland Burris where he is in the U.S. Senate. The ineffective instrument of Blagojevich's punishment of the citizens of Illinois, Burris allowed his vanity to sell off what, if any, dignity he had left. Every person, every voter in Illinois gets Burris. We also get the voices for Special Election.

Jan Schakowsky wants the Senate probably more than Burris and would prove as thigh tinglingly inspirational.

SEIU wants . . .the end of the American middle class.

Hogs at the trough want greater snout room.

Special Election in Illinois will let those dreams come true.

Lisa Madigan is an astute lawyer under political pressure. Mike Madigan is a public servant. Mike Madigan has it right.

Steve Brown, a spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago), raised concerns about a special election's price tag but had not seen the attorney general's opinion.

"I don't know the opinion paves the way for anything," said Brown, whose boss is the attorney general's father. "You have an appointment process in place for 130 years, and no one has really complained about it. The reality is it's $50 million. Does anyone suggest where we find that money? That's really the critical question.

Yep, we can live with Burris.

Roland Burris Goes Old School(yard) on Durbin and All Illinois Weenies!

Nothing is more sobering and life affirming than the delicate dance involved when a quick kid zips the skimmer with nifty propeller off of the slow fat kid. The fat kid was given the swell hat by Aunt Gert who lives with 'Her Friend' and a monkey and who has done all that she can to help young Delmer - or Young Dick - be sure to get bullied and sassed by the guys whose parents and relatives actually care about protecting their children.

Most parents or relatives might say to young Delmer -or Dick -,

'Hey look, Dick, I know you like that beanie with the prop, but it might be better to leave it next to your Big Boy's Book of Elves and Wizards on the dresser here at home.'

Nope Delmer's -or Dick's - Mater and Pater encourage self-esteem and young Delmer -or Dick - sallies out wearing a hat that says VICTIMIZE ME!!!!

The hat gets snatched and Delmer -or Dick -pathetically whines 'Give it back!'

The point of taking the hat in the first place was to signal disapproval of both the swell hat/beanie and the tubby self that wears it.

'Give it back! It's mine!'

This we know - He has it and will keep it.

Roland Burris grabbed Dick Durbin's hat ( Senator by appointment and legally proper) and he's keeping it!

Stay put Senator! Keep the Golden Beanie ( US Senate Seat - You snatched it!) Keep the weenies in the State of Illinois whining and crying for a Special Election.

'Roland, Give it Back! It's Golden! Give it!'

Ash Wednesday -'Time's Up! Let's Go, Fat Boy!'

In omnibus operibus tuis memorare novissima tua, et in aeternum non peccabis - In all that you do, remember this Bud's for you!

'No, I'm sorry . . . In all of your works be aware of your last end and you will never sin.'

Who the hell this guy from the Book of Ecclesiasticus was talking to is beyond me.

Me and every human child above the age of six is aware of Death* - others and our own - and we sin up a storm. Hence, Lent.

Lent brings us to a place each year when we can actually make an effort to abstain from the inclinations and vanities that creep into our lives each day.

Lent is a good thing - it is Faith in Action. Faith in Action is what distinguishes Catholics from our Calvinist and Lutheran co-religionists.

We as Catholics got embarrassed by our Militant Catholicism ( Faith in Action) and apologized or hid it away for the last fifty years. Remember Bishop Shiel? Saul Alinsky stole most of his programs and ideas.

This Lent let's get back in the game.

We have over 7,000 Catholic white men committed to Leo High School and they support poor black - mostly non-Catholic young men - in getting a quality Catholic Education.

We have Catholics leading the Police Athletic League of the Chicago Crime Commission taking steps to get kids off the streets and into a gym and a boxing program.

Catholics are the most generous demographic in Chicago.

Practice Faith in Action - Good Works - and don't worry about the Final Visitor.


* By the time the two of you read this, I will be attending the funeral in Kankakee of a former student, a splendid young man, devoted husband, and father of two - a Notre Dame grad and banker. He is doing just fine right now, as his life was Faith in Action.

Happy Fat Tuesday -Clique My Post Title and Shake it!

Just Cuz*! Happy Shrove Tuesday One and All! Lent Starts tomorrow so get your game faces on for forty days.

* Arguably the finest cut of vinyl from the finest few years in music.

My late wife and I asked Father Yarno, C.S.V. if we might have this as a wedding march, but we were told that it might not be considered appropriate . . .The man did not know of whom he speaks - appropriate? Hell, Yeah!

More Zorn Scorn of Catholics - It's Lent Dummy - People Make It Holy and Zorn Mocks Faith

Muslims are a Giggle!

Ramadan is the month in which Muslims must fast from sun-up to sun-down. This is meant to feel how the poor people are without food or water. In addition, Muslims close their bodies off from earthly demands by denying themselves food and drink. This in turn allows for the nourishment of the soul.

Fasting is more than just the mere denial of food and drink. Muslims must also abstain from smoking and sexual contact. In addition, there are culture-specific beliefs regarding the watching of television, listening to music, and the perusal of any secular vise that does not in some way enhance

Jews are Charming!

Five additional prohibitions are traditionally observed, as detailed in the Jewish oral tradition (Mishnah tractate Yoma 8:1):

Eating and drinking
Wearing leather shoes
Bathing/washing
Anointing oneself with perfumes or lotions
Sexual relations

Catholics are Outrageous!

Lent - Catholics fast, abstain, meditate, and pray to become better people. Wow - that is Outrageous!

Hey, Eric. This is a Catholic town. No kidding. Like any weasel, who makes sport of someone or some religion you feign genuine interest - 'so, Asians are all dog lovers -is that correct?'

The Father Guido Sarducii character on "Saturday Night Live" once announced that he was giving up menthol cigarettes for Lent. A friend's son gravely informed me several years ago that he was giving up using his Sony PlayStation for Lent.

"That should be tough for you," I said, knowing his fondness for video games.

"Not really," he said. "We also have Xbox."

I get it! Catholics are hypocrites. Hey, Dip Stick - do you have the Grapes to mock Rosh Hoshanna, Yom Kippur, Ramadan, or the purely artificially constructed Kwanza?

No grapes at all and a very short vine, no doubt. Catholics are easy targets, because we generally do not loosen a few of the molars of loudmouths and punks -any more. We generally laugh it off and consider the source - usually a Pencil Neck Geek with too a high an opinion of the schools he/she attended.

Let us return to those thrilling days of yesteryear! Just messing with you Eric. No one - Jeez that I know of - is going to separate your Ivories from your gums. Just metaphors.

Tell us, Eric, about your most Outrageous or Outlandish attempt at snide humor. Better yet, drop by a Knights of Columbus Hall make fun of the Virgin Mary, promote Abortion, or mock the Downs Syndrome Kids.

This Lent, I will tend to ignore smarmy punks who mock another person's Faith. Starting tomorrow, Ash Wednesday (Eric, thats the day when all of us Catholics have ashes made in the Sign of Cross to remind us of Death and Resurrection). Until then . . .